Living demands Change, Change demands Sacrifice
by Ice of the Kitsune's Fire
Summary: Character Study. If there is one thing Asseylum has learned on earth, it is this: words are not enough. She cannot just stand there, make her plea and expect the world to follow. She must forge her own road; there is no other choice.


A/N: At this point, I've written character studies for Inaho, Slaine, and Lemrina – and interestingly enough, all of them are somehow centered around Asseylum's existence and her actions. In a way, Asseylum is almost more of a symbolic character than an actual individual in the canon series. The various ways she is perceived is a HUGE defining factor for other characters.

I'd like to point out this though: everyone is justified in their own mind. This one was a challenge to write.

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Asseylum likes being kind to people. It gives her a sense of purpose; it makes her feel like she is reaching out to others. As a princess, the number of things she is allowed to experience is limited – few people dare to correct her, and even fewer will speak with her candidly about the state of the world with her. Being kind is a way of getting people to open up to her. It is also the product of a caretaker's subtle tactic– _if the princess is taught to be kind, perhaps she will one day realize the suffering that lies beyond her gilded cage_ – so Asseylum's caretaker reasons.

(What the caretaker does not realize is that softheartedness and ignorance combined make the Versian knights dismissive of the princess; by the time this has taken hold, the caretaker is already dead. Asseylum is told that she returned to take care of her family).

The end result is this: Asseylum is kind because she believes it is the right thing to be, she believes that it is her duty as a princess to bridge gaps with understanding and diplomacy. The new caretaker catch on quickly and makes sure Asseylum does not learn about the rest of Vers.

Instead, Asseylum learns all of the proper etiquette and social niceties as she grows. She is told to love her people and be mindful of who she bestows her favor upon. She obeys. Although she is easily pleased, she lets the difference in rank keep a polite distance between her heart and the multitude of suitors. She remembers all of their names, however. She is only (legitimate) heir to the throne, and one day, her grandfather will choose a husband to rule alongside her.

(Asseylum does not worry too much, however – her grandfather is fond of her, and would likely take her suggestions into consideration. Nevertheless, she enjoys the time she has before marriage.)

She grows up innocent, but this does not make her passive. Early on, she asks for Slaine's company for the knowledge he has about earth. The counts indulge her, as they always have, but Asseylum absorbs stories about earth and its creatures like a sponge, half in love with the imagery and half in love with the idea. She wants to visit, but it is forbidden – there has been radio silence from both ends since Heaven's Fall. No matter. She always gets what she wants in the end, she will simply have to think of another way.

* * *

When she is fourteen, there is an assassination attempt.

Nothing happens to her, of course, the guards are too quick for that. But the thought _what if_ runs through her mind for the first time, and she asks the guards to teach her how to defend herself. They have the audacity to laugh at her, before stating that they will never let anything happen to her. But the _what if_ keeps tugging at her mind, and she finally convinces Klancain, one of the Knight's visiting sons, to demonstrate how to pin someone down – out of curiosity, of course. He shows her two, three times before someone finds them and reprimands the boy for exposing the princess to such things.

She uses the pin herself exactly once in her life, on a boy she has never seen before.

(Kaizuka Inaho is intrigued by the short girl that attacks him the moment he tries to speak, but says nothing on the matter. He notes that her pin is fairly weak, but stays down to humor her, mainly because he is more likely to understand her motive if he cooperates.)

* * *

Asseylum vers Allusia is a princess, and she is kind. The war is an injustice she must correct, and she believes that if the misunderstandings surrounding her alleged death are cleared, peace will be achieved. She feels like a true Versian princess when she uses the UFE's resources to broadcast a message out to space, announcing her survival and declaring her desire for peace.

When she finds out that her plea for peace is ignored, her world shatters. Her words are not enough. _She_ is not enough – she is their princess, and her people do not care. She cannot create peace with her own words, so she straps into the back of Yuki's kataphrakt, and forces an armistice using her own hands, shutting the ship's Aldnoah drive down.

Afterwards, she cradles Inaho's bloody hands in her own, awash with triumph and relief. She can give him a moment to rest, but they need to get out of here; she needs to help negotiate the peace –

A bullet pierces her chest. She turns – and then something ricochets through her head, obliterating all sound and thought.

* * *

When she awakens – (for the second time, memories coursing through her, fear shaking her to the bone) – she is confused. Nothing makes sense.

It is Eddelrittuo and her half sister that explain everything to her. Asseylum is devastated at the blood that has been spilt while she slept on, ignorant to everything but the fuzzy pulse of dreams.

How could Slaine do this? How could he lead and encourage this pointless, bloody war? It goes against everything she knows of him, she tells Lemrina, who simply smiles strangely and says, _you don't know Slaine at all_.

Asseylum is determined. The three girls hatch out a plan, and when Asseylum asks why Lemrina is cooperating, the other girls simply says,

"He betrayed the both of us".

* * *

If there is one thing Asseylum has learned on earth, it is this: words are not enough. She cannot just stand there, make her plea and expect the world to follow.

So when she releases her disguise, she brings a gun to Slaine's forehead and orders him to end the war. (He has changed, and so has she, she cannot be the princess she was before earth, not anymore)

For all her life, Slaine had always listened to her. She knew she had his absolute loyalty, and she knows that this war is Slaine's twisted way of offering the world to her. It hurts to think that he has changed enough that her words will not stop him. Words, she knows, are not enough, and so she puts a gun to his head to make him surrender.

But he walks towards her and she can't bear to shoot him, _won't,_ and he knows it.

Her power is stripped from her, and she is caged with her sister.

* * *

When she escapes, she tries to make appeals. She does not know what to do with this new Slaine, she only knows that he must be stopped.

She asks Inaho to save Slaine from the misery she is sure he is acting out of. She hopes Slaine can be redeemed, believes in the boy who first told her about the birds that flew through the sky, who taught her that man and nature – Earth and Vers – could coexist in peace. For the hundredth time, she asks herself _why_.

Her eyes water when Inaho's analytical eye declares the boy's innermost feelings for her. Dear, kind, Inaho; with his knowledge of earth, his bravery and skill. She thinks she might love him. But it is too late.

(She does not see the irony Slaine surely would have, if he saw this moment)

* * *

After Klancain rescues her, she requests access to the royal chambers of her grandfather with the intention of telling him with the truth.

But she's been asleep for too long. Her grandfather does not know who she is. He speaks of Aldnoah, then of his dead son, of war and hate, before recognizing her abruptly – _is that you, Asseylum?_

She cries when he gives an appeal of his own.

 _Become a fine princess. And lead our people to happiness._

Her family is gone; her connections are lost. There are no more paths left to her.

* * *

She must forge her own road; there is no other choice. Her standing is weak, both the United Earth Forces and the Orbital Knights are against her.

This is war; sacrifices need to be made. She finally understands this now. A part of her is ashamed for not understanding earlier, but it is no matter, she has to move forward. Words are not enough for peace, gestures are not either, _she knows this_ but they are all she has left, so she gathers everything she has and readies herself. While the broadcast is loading, she spares a moment to mourn Inaho and her feelings for him – their relationship will never see fruition. But she is a princess; and sacrifice is part of her duty.

She speaks:

"Hear me, Orbital Knights of Vers. I am Asseylum Vers Allusia, princess royal of Vers Empire."

This is her path; there is no turning back. She stands.

 _"I hereby succeed the previous emperor, Rayregalia Vers Rayvers, and name myself Empress of the Vers Empire. I also take Count Cruhteo, member of the Orbital Knights' 37 Clans, to be my husband."_

She closes her eyes. Her chest burns with resolve.

 _"We, the imperial family of the Vers Empire, wish to make peace with earth!"_

* * *

A/N: All of the quotes used here come straight from the subbed episodes. I omitted a few lines, but what I have quoted is accurate.

I tried to portray Asseylum in a realistic light, without fan criticism heaped upon her. Yes, she is mostly ignorant, and she is idealistic, but I think Asseylum genuinely fought hard for the peace she so desires, and that she believes that she is not at fault. She doesn't see a problem with her actions, nor does she realize that the conflict is far too deeply rooted to be ended just like that. She did her best, and the A/Z creators gave her the peace she wanted.

I believe the peace she created probably will not last, mainly because of the power imbalance still existing (seriously, Aldnoah reactors? Selling Aldnoah? There's no way that's going to pan out well economically or politically). But aside from that, I think Asseylum is a strong character that doesn't let anything get in her way. Or at least, has the potential to be that kind of person.

Please let me know what you thought of the characterization and writing style. Critique is always welcome.


End file.
